Comments on: On work and heat

By: What’s with the name? « Tribute to Narcissism

What’s with the name? « Tribute to Narcissism — Fri, 31 Aug 2007 04:56:19 +0000

[...] else would I have discovered David is trying to get by without air conditioning? Or that Josh had freakin’ twins recently and changed jobs. Or that my god son has [...]

By: Michael Burton

Michael Burton — Wed, 15 Aug 2007 05:24:17 +0000

Goodness, ya. I went through a pretty miserable summer last year up in our attic during the days. With nothing more that pitch and tar between me and the shingles, it heated up nice and early. I went the route of foil over the windows, hanging sheets to minimize the working footprint, and a small window a/c unit to bring it down to a reasonable temp.

It just kills me to run that thing all day though so this summer I moved my office into the basement. Not nearly as much light, room, or sense of "space" (even though I've actually got more headroom) but the drastic drop in temp being literally underground makes all the difference in the world!

By: Donna

Donna — Mon, 13 Aug 2007 14:35:25 +0000

Your dad is a “cold shower” promoter. It does cool you down in a hurry and takes a while to warm up.
It sure was hot when we were there. Mom

By: Dan

Dan — Sun, 12 Aug 2007 18:08:57 +0000

Or, during the day you could run a dehumidifier indoors to make it feel cooler.

Or, you are doing just fine.

By: Dan

Dan — Sun, 12 Aug 2007 14:03:01 +0000

Very Mediterranean system you have in place there. All you need are shutters for the day, tiles on the roof for increased airflow...

Or you could go with the aluminum foil all around the outside of the house to reflect light/heat away. The house probably keeps the temps up in the evening with absorbed heat. A couple cans of white paint could do the trick.

Or you could go with pipes embedded in the ground that circulate cold water through the floor/walls of your house. After installation costs, it is just the running of an electric pump. Pretty inexpensive.

Or you could get some of those temperature absorbing tiles that have a substance in them that liquefy at low temps (using the increased energy it takes to turn solid to liquid) to store heat energy. Then shut them off from the living space so they vent their heat into the night's cool air.

Or...

heh heh

By: Mike H.

Mike H. — Thu, 09 Aug 2007 16:38:55 +0000

The office in my last house had a pair of tall, south-facing windows and it was only a 10x12 room. On a clear, 80+ degree day it could get kind of uncomfortable. The last two springs/summers I dealt with it by putting up bamboo blinds and a set of curtains. Right up until the temperatures were hitting the mid to high 90s that worked, except there was no outdoor light. I had to put an air conditioner in once temperatures were staying in the 90s.

This year we had a few hot days early on and I got proactive and added a layer of reflective window film. I didn't have to run the a/c even on 90+ degree days if I kept a small fan pointed at me from the hallway running to the north side of the house, where it stayed cool longer. I could leave the curtains and blinds half up/open to get some sense of real daylight.

It's a little fussy to put on perfectly, and the windows I was dealing with had curved corners, which made it even trickier, but it worked really well. When we moved out, the film came off easily. I just loosened a corner with a bit of water and started pulling. No residue.

By: amy

amy — Thu, 09 Aug 2007 14:47:03 +0000

wow, david – good work. I have to say, living on the top floor of an apt. building this week has been…a little grumpy-making? I’ve actually been thankful that I get to trundle off to work in the morning and spend my days in a/c coolerific wonderland.